How to Make Paper Helicopters

Anyone can make paper airplanes, but how many people can make paper helicopters? You'll soar to new heights once you create these paper flying machines.

These paper helicopters for kids are so simple and are great to do by yourself or with a group of your friends. And even if the weather doesn't allow for you to release your paper helicopters outdoors, prop up a fan and have your own indoor helicopter launch.

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Hover Craft Helicopter

After cutting out the center of thehelicopter, peel two layers of cardboard.

You'll seem to float through the air while watching your hover craft helicopter levitate.

What You'll Need:

5-inch-square corrugated cardboard, 1/8-inch thick

Pop-up squirt-bottle cap

Purple acrylic paint

Binder reinforcements

Silver glitter glue

Large balloon

Tools:

Compass

Pencil

Scissors

Craft knife

Ruler

Paintbrush

How to Make a Hover Craft Helicopter:

Step 1: With a compass, draw a four-inch circle on the cardboard. Cut out. Center the squirt-bottle cap on the cardboard circle and trace around it with a pencil.

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Step 2: With the help of an adult, use the craft knife to cut out the center circle, cutting through the top two layers of cardboard only. Peel away these two layers of the center circle, leaving the bottom layer intact.

Step 3: With an adult's help, use the craft knife to cut a 1/4-inch square hole in the center of the bottom layer. Push the bottle cap down into the circle. It should fit firmly and tightly. (Remove cap before painting and decorating the cardboard.)

Place the bottle cap back into

Step 4: Push bottle cap back into the center circle. Paint both sides of the circle, letting paint dry on one side before painting the other side. Let dry. Decorate the top with binder reinforcements. Add silver rays with glitter glue. Let dry

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Papercopter

With some strips of paper and a few paper clips, you can create a mini papercopter that spins like a real helicopter.

What You'll Need:

Strips of heavy paper or cardboard (1X10 inches)

Small paper clips

Markers or crayons

How to Make Papercopter:

Step 1: Fold a 1X10-inch strip of paper in half. Fold the ends down about two inches, but don't fold them straight down. Instead, fold them at a slight angle.

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Place a paper clip on the bottomof your folded papercopter.

Step 2: Push a paper clip onto the bottom, and fold the wings out. Decorate your papercopter with markers or crayons. Holding your papercopter by the paper clip, throw it into the air and watch it spin.

Keep reading to learn how to make a twirling helicopter.

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Try some experimentation. What happens if you add more paper clips to the bottom? Or if you use a longer strip of paper to make your papercopter? Or if you fold the wings at more (or less) of an angle?

Whirly Bird Helicopter

Whirly bird helicopterscolorfully glide through the air.

Fun to make and even more fun to fly, the whirly bird helicopter twirls through the air.

What You'll Need:

3X8 1/4-inch yellow cardstock

Decorative stickers

Tools:

Tracing paper

Paper clips

Pencil

Ruler

Carbon paper

Scissors

How to Make a Whirly Bird Helicopter:

Step 1: Download the Helicopter Pattern as a PDF. Place tracing paper over the pattern, and secure with paper clips. With a pencil, trace over all the lines, including cutting and folding lines. Use a ruler to help trace straight lines. Remove tracing paper from the pattern.

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Step 2: Place carbon paper between the cardstock and the tracing paper pattern. Paper clip the three together and trace over all the lines to transfer the pattern onto the cardstock. Remove the clips. Cut out. Make the three cuts as indicated on the pattern.